In hepatitis C virus (HCV)-positive patients, substantial iron overload leads to progressive liver damage. In this study, investigators evaluated the effect of iron concentration and HFE mutations on response to pegylated interferon retreatment in HCV-positive patients with advanced fibrosis or cirrhosis.
Participants from the lead-in treatment phase of the U.S. Hepatitis C Anti-viral Long-term Treatment to prevent Cirrhosis (HALT-C) trial were treated with weekly peginterferon-α-2a (180μg) and daily ribavirin (1000–1200 mg). Patients with Ishak fibrosis scores >2 and without iron overload (Scheuer iron grade, <3+) were eligible. HFE mutational testing (for C282Y, H63D, and S65C) was completed in 1051 subjects. In addition, hepatic iron conc…